The San Francisco call. [volume], October 20, 1907, Page 16, Image 16

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
AN ALLIGATOR
FARMER
AND HIS
CROP
C. O. Steele Jr.
GALIFORNTA probably - has more
kinds of farms than any other •
atate In the union,' but * 'way;
down south, where the crops are.
mostly cotton, corn, aweet . potatoea
and children, there Is a farm the like
cf which waa never eeen in California
cr any other state, for it 'is the only
one cf its kind In the world. . The
product of this strange farm Is noth
ing else than alligators, and when', the
••crop la moving" It is. Indeed, a; won
derful eight/
This farm Is. located at Hot Springs,
Ark., and the farmer's name 'is. H.' l.
CampbelL - Ills father -was a colonel in -
the Eagllsb army « and Mr. . Campbell
was born on the banks of the Ganges
in India, where alligators are thick.
Campbell ran away from * home at; an
early age and knocked around the
world for . aereral > years. ( Ht finally
wound up. "In" Arizona, where .; he:
punched -cattle until he met .and be
oame acquainted with Buffalo: Bill -and
Joined his rousa riders. • He; won"- the -,
prize offered by the " Columbian expo*-*
eitlon for, the ; fastest ride • from" Ari-^
rona to Chicago at the . time of .lihe *
fair, without change of mount, which
goes to show that he was " the '"real \u25a0'•
thin gin rou gh riders. - . : \u0084 ; .
The Eot Springs ; enterprise vras- es
tablished In' 1903 ' and has flourished ,
from; the .start. When^ the "people a
learned what; a strange thing waa; In
their midst . they < began to : flock, to" it
daily and news -of *It was ckrried .'all
orer the country by thousands [of visit- ~ :
* ors to the ep'rlngs; returning; to "their'
homes. The ;; original^ breeding" •\u25a0s'tocki.
1 waa secured f ' from * the' swamps \u25a0 and"
bayous of | the'! aoutaam ' states, ' prta
eJpally; from | Louisiana, where : alliga
tors i: are. jfound in : abuadaaoa, ; EacA.
year since, Campbell j has Journeyed to
the- hauata. of 'rbrary'sTator," 'and : wtta
several* trained ' assistants hat * >aco e~»&»
ed in eapturtag aad brtagtng back to
the j farm a eoapla 'of oarloada -of \u25a0 fine
epecimsas.. •• --\u25a0;; \u25a0--•\u25a0 - I • -V r- \u25a0\u25a0'-\u25a0''\u25a0•'''.
The \ farm, which Its \u25a0 Icdcc ed wttata
a | high -.. board f eaca, cccaples a .ooupl«
of acres of ' rourh, •. rooky ground,
through the middle *of which a tmatt
stream^ flows. .\u25a0 The . stream la dammed
at ;, lntervaia, 'thereby farming j aereral
email lakes. The' lakes >are used for
the \u25a0' diTieioa ,' of die creatures acoord*
Ing. to slse ajid age, which U made
necewary \u0084by r [ the ; canttlballstlo . ten
dency of the; saurian. M&'Oator toras
his - off«pring ito-- much \u25a0 that It tit
youngsters were laft to his tender
mercies \u25a0 they -would \ t» s/obbl ed up ta
shorty, order. ,. and - tha a took depletsd,
Therefore the . btblea are placed ' tafosf
ponfl, thoee a; Utfls, larcsr. la the nes^
and ; ao ,ea accerdlaa; ' to stso j aad .age.
The ** ponda <'\u25a0 are \u25a0"• separated fby stroaf
• wire -' netting. '~*.;.9tit \tiii« the \ Tateran
:Of,\ th*ej: Bock ?s»d "\ probaWy > tha j, ftaeit
>p«clmen of aJlHrateraoed ta eaptlvity^
haa -a - pool all to WmWf, where he
floata ' ta - lasy; dignity or; wracwla 'upon
the : ; baak * to C«ttn^.as , beoomes ; his
500';pounda aad'tOO, years. i^Ha' tsTtruJy
monarch of all. he aurreya- and It U
death ;to ' anything' that r cornea wltUa
.h|s;'r«aeb4Urem^«\butl'ft«C^*:y'bll!y%
'goaL-,;V/ \u25a0 \u25a0 '' \u25a0\u25a0' : \u25a0\u25a0\u25a0'\u25a0 >i V.;'-' .-l : j '\u25a0.'\u25a0'.\u25a0
\ >eadlag; time Is \u25a0 the isost ' tateresnn*
partf of I the ;day.- toj the* throng !of Visit
ore Uhat ' crowd 1 : the | farm ; dallyr. \As »"th a
VlgX'gatol ;s j eat * but| b^ce \ a^week ; 1 1 } Is
necesia.TT}lhat only ia. part, of the* hard
Ska - Saa Fraaclsco Sunday, Call.
TmHEM at: a-. tlme/ta :*JW&rtmifMa fea
ture may' be; vrltnasted «aca day. Oreai
chunks pi [ rnw " meat* araAtßroTrn;- to
'th'am/'^rh^eyiselxViirJa'^th^tr^po^rftd'
' Jawa, ahak* ]It '\u25a0. vigorously a : few I times
i aa '• a 'dog would '- a rat and then \ sink
' alowlyjto" : (aa bo t »om -ta enjoy "" v th« r f east
leisurely. ' Tlva ; aHJffator ha« • no delicata
ayp«tlt». \ It ; xsakea little diflereaca to
Mm whe'thor.tho meat is -a day "old ,or a
; a^tli,"tjwd^lf^ ha^^caa' t"; gntl ajjaquar*
aaial a }W*eeklne'll»tok«^oaoX»",i2»onth;
; taaak • you: • and .' if times are , hard | hell
taaaagaitoget .aloag'.fOT.a'.eoapla^of
; jnontht ( '^thout^eating; \' f ; ( • , ; _
/ iThr t'Batbrs^ara by
; j^-ICaxopbell^ihVpatlta .irtfe : of , thV
; taaaaffant^ho \u25a0 seeaia ; qtilto % as mcea at
boo* oroon g , th c ; er e atu ra a " aa jh er hvs
.band." She "graips !1 ttl e : Mr. 'Qat« r aaald
'.'aWpsK**&~::^^pryiajg(htßf. jaws "open'Vwita'
. her. - Cn gera. 11 1 eraK y - ; staffs » him fun of
cheq?pe<J - ta,&s. t. : VTh en -he 'has. be«n fad
•'thaXllttlJ^aJllgator" takes *oa Ithat * aane-,
' tlmoaious .femtle \ which ; r be ; habitually
wears ; and > proceeds to jhunt % a_i anany
• plac« if or " a siesta. Mrs. r-' Campbell ; seeaia
"to\eajoy and*, the \ crowd the
jMtttal^^mao's^ne^.aV/fori'shVjhsiidlM
i and . feeds , them - al 1, \b is an d 11 1 1 1 «, . V.i th
no :taora ; : excitement* than the : ordinary
fermTtrtfe 'would 'dia^lay^ta}feedlnjp:her
\u25a0; chteketi.,ST|i? 'blgfalllgatori : are ; rery «
'\u25a0. t ondTof 'i ehlckena or * afejeise c or /fowl \u2666of
) aiay ,ldnd,"f while ;ij Woe;f»t'pup Is a"dell
'cMvr/i tedaed.*/ Mors'f th"aa ' one yttiu^. v
"'fiog;' has^eoraa^ to) aa j un'tlaiely^ «ad*;' by ;
\u25a0 littlnr^ his *otrrl oslty^rgetlaway ;" £ •KBalMa
'fasmttoa. X small wtgta ssausaci
treated aa tfca spot at which the traat*
«dy ©oaarnsd tail* tae *o«»wtul tftU
•S how on* f ruaty pup wu d»port»d ta
tae happy bmntiajr ground sad aeotatv
alligator i&a&a happy.
An alligator hss a d*at la fate TioA
<s/nere hi j brain ousts* to b* brrt ia
iptte of this alight defloisasy M?*.
CtnpSill hu succeeded la »»«tMTtg
t&ar of tha bl*. brutes, easa measuring
tome eljrnt feet te length, to alide down
a.ohuta to foot In height. Ths to? o?
the chute Is gained by meaaa of aa tn
cltaed waodan trough wlta cleats on
the bottom to afford a foothold for ths
unwieldy creaturea. Waea they reach
the top they trait tor a alxnxl, atwhloh
thty Jump Into the chut* and cos*
eliding down, whether or »ot they aa*
ioy It ta problet&atlcsJ. tat tha gaatle
ran* never leaves tho.-a. r-;hsr -;hs trials ii
not much In itseSS, >?.? it what
woafiarf ul control li». £§£ Mrs. Camp,
toll oare orar the u«3y r^tes. Prob
ably no ctbe* living ?.4a»cni have aa
great knowledge ;•$ $&« bsblts and the
proper hacilliasr e£ fcntipitsrs.
An Afflgator Snosator 'S^
r Kr*rr tEtarestlr.g part of tha t*tmf
fa >ta» imner time Is the "factory/*
Where tactfbatioa takas place. The
eggs are spread cat la the sun t»
hatch. Ineubaticn requires from SO to
T5 days by this method, unless there la
aa uausual number ot cool* cloudr
days durtes the period. A more satis
factory method la that of the large In
aubator which Mr. Campbell uses.- It
la made aad operated very ranch aa aa
ordinary chicken Incubator aad usually
hatches the eggs In 40 days. The crop
et young alligators this summer will
number about 2.000, but It will not sup-
Iply. th« demand. Most of the 200.000
annual visitors to Hot Springs go to
ths alligator farm, and many of them
traat *to carry away a baby alligator.
The little fallows are sold for II apleee
while they last. A full line of every
coaestrable kind of alligator leathsr
Coo da Is told at the- farm also, aad th*
revenue f rota theas two sources, to
gether with the admission teas, makes
the business quits profitable.
la Its natural horn* the- - aZUgater
hibernate* * buiTOWlag !a:o the mod
aad staying there all wtatsT. tStts la
fun for the alligator bat poor btsstnaa*
for Mr. C*inpb«Ul, as ha weald h*rt
to doss for slat months ta «h» rt%r.
To get arc cai the dldculty l£r. Caas«
bw hai built - a lone levr bnlMtS*
«T«r a a tries ci shallow sects. Ta*
Irmt«r fa kept at aa area t«ro«ra«r»
Ail winter by maans of staaia pise*.
Serins -this period >ta» ant-raaJa chow
ca inert l!JT» than ao easy toga. Shay
via cat notnlaa; . aad oaa be a&sdladi
+lth pe»ftct aafatj* Tb«y 1U la th*:
vatar < porfaetZy, tformaat astli ti»
<enuna w*atßt» retaraa. Than thcr ajKW
taken 'to* the outatdsposds asam atUif
fn - a ahort ttms th»y hiTa ch*cLs«4;
from aeetntesly Iliel*ss thlara to th%
taost eaorafatlo of oraaturx. thsy
pour tson octlT* v th* vtatfcw c*u!
Irarmtr.&nd by Jm* thaf *?• wry
•ttelot* and It ta ftaaaxsrous cr? in*
cms who doea Mt Saow borr to axaglj
titon to > wjroac?ti * fcisy art Tttry.
ftetar at till ttaia, asmttlßsr a »aqtfKaa
ajetnd whloa might bt dea«rlb«d v rv
«ro«9 Mtweaa a hies and a b«l!am la
tb» fsllowlag deaths of Jtiy u4 A^
a/ttrt.tha famalea ar» guardtoaJ that?
ngn - acd are ' fßrrwrffrnafty j iaagwouj.
'«art aa aaca aa) tho ess* are hatofa adV;
Jjower«r» the motaer loa«a) all latarsaj,
ia her baba* and th«y srart hustli Cc*.
•oesncalTM and nastlo Drat 7tJ itty
wtmM «ra« Mlag «si«a by. ««M «>
iMtr grown «p kta*
Small 'Oators Eaay Prey
BSbc« aajtwMtiftrtttf tit 2**3OL tSK
C»s2yben baa casglt tan* Ysi&rfA
aiUffitors aad huadredJ cf truH ©net
ea his arascal haatlag trlsa. Tn*^sh
' •£• aktßt «f th» dead alU«*ean ara
ennad aad cud* into many ha&amta*
artlcl9ft tho lira aUlgatora arej aa
tjtsch o«r» raluabl* that all aaorfr la
Sent toward their capture rather thaa
iheir killing. Two maa go out ta a
little .' boat, on* rowing and one with
a long pols to which has ba.es attached
a' strong lasso. The no oaa Is aUppad
over .the alligator's .head aad ho ta
hauled in/ This method la daagarous
'with large alligators/ for they lash
around bo much that there ts great
'danger of th» boat being smashed to
kindling wood with one blow from a
mighty, talL They can strike hard
enough to knock a maa senseless. Tha
small 'gators ara easily caught They
lie still on tha bottom and tmagina
they are hid. They may be safely
drawn-out -by hand. . The old method
of catching alligators - was by baiting
' a etrCU steel i hook, but this plan us
ually results In Injury or death to tha
-reptile '"and Is not used by Jlr. Camp
.'\u25a0 bell.-' -Frequently a Ms 'scator will grab
,; the end of a long pole. which 13 poked
at him with his teeth , and hold on
until ; he Is .drawn out on land.
Speaking of tha animal's lack of In
telligence ..and bulldog: tenacity, Mr.
Campbell says: "They have absolutely
no ,- intelligence, but > are creatures
guiced solely by Instinct. They have
'no room for brains ,la their flat h^ads,
..as "yon can- see for yourself. Their
mental machinery ts simply aa en
largement at th« and of their spinal
cords. ' You, might pass near a eeem
lngly. dormant alligator without hla
noticing^ you ninety-nine tlmea out of
a J hundred.' buf tha ' hundredth. . tlaa ho
would likely as not snap at yom And
" : lf he does, look out. If a *gator takes
hold'of youhe will never letgo. Tha
tenacity. •of a bulldog or a turtle,
are credited with ability to bans
" on : forever, Is a Joka compared with
the' way aa alligator sticks. If a large,
•gatdr 'should obtain a fair hold oa you
It* would bo 'a question o! your Ufa or
the 'gator-a. Tou couldn't pry his Jawi
open with*a' crowbar. If you unlocked
bis . Jaws • you would hays to \u25a0» usa bis
>eyea . tor I keyholeaU^BaaQHSßßaV
air. Campbell haa been ruaalasj twc.
rsmall .-branch^ farms, in tho St. LamU
* summer .gardens this ' suauaoT aad thet
i enterprises wer 9 so successiul thAi ae>
latesds jtor^stablish^jtaem -farm*; suutx